When Bryan McCabe mentioned on a Hockey Night In Canada interview last night that he might look at a number of trade destinations potentially presented to him, his legions of bashers must have been jumping for joy.

But before all those critics gleefully start putting together their "Bon Voyage Bryan" placards in the hopes of his eventual departure, he had a strong message for the fans when he emerged from the dressing room after the Maple Leafs' 3-1 victory over the Atlanta Thrashers last night.

"I want to stay. I signed here and chose to stay here because this is where I want to be. I think there would be nothing better than to bring a championship to this city," he said.

"There are no guarantees, but I don't want to move. My wife is seven months pregnant. We don't want to go anywhere."

NO LIST

McCabe met with interim general manager Cliff Fletcher Friday concerning the no-movement clause in his contract.

"I didn't give him a list of teams I would consider or anything like that," he said. "I told Cliff I would talk to my wife about things. I did, and we both agreed we want to stay."

Asked if he expected to be in the Leafs lineup Wednesday against the Florida Panthers, the first game after the trade deadline, McCabe replied: "Yes, I do."

Yet the door on his potential movement does not appear to be completely closed.

McCabe said as much, remarking that if Fletcher came to him with an offer: "I'd consider it."

What cities might he be open to thinking about?

"I'm not going to speculate," he said. "Like I said, I want to stay."

McCabe's wife, Roberta, is from Long Island, where they live during the off-season. The Islanders, New York Rangers and Philadelphia Flyers are three teams that have been linked to McCabe, and all play within 21/2 hours of his off-season home.